Deployment
by FairyTails77
Summary: Little something I wrote for the first day of Nalu Week. Natsu is being deployed into the military and Lucy is having a hard time saying goodbye, fearing that she may never see him again.


It was a beautiful afternoon. The vast open sky shone a brilliant blue with not a cloud to be seen. A slight breeze blew through the air, carrying a few leaves that had fallen from the reddening autumn trees. Despite the season, it was still comfortably warm.

It was absolutely horrible.

Lucy held on tightly to the pink haired man standing in front of her. He wore a beige camouflage uniform with matching boots and Lucy would say that he looked rather handsome in it if it weren't for their current situation. He clung to her as well, allowing her to bury her face in the crook of his neck and quietly sob. His strong hand rested on the back of her head and he couldn't help but press his lips to her forehead for several prolonged seconds.

"Please don't go."

Natsu's grip tightened around her. "I'm sorry Luce." He felt her take a shaky breath. For a second there it seemed like she was going to look up but she must have second guessed her bravery to look him in the eyes.

"You better write every damn day." Natsu couldn't help but chuckle.

"And if I don't, you can kill me when I get back." He paused for a second, a smile creeping on to his face. "Do I have permission to kick Gray's ass?"

Lucy let loose a small laugh. Her voice was cracked and hoarse. "You're going to do it anyways. But yes, only for special occasions."

"What if just happens to always be a special occasion?"

Lucy shook her head in Natsu's shoulder which was now soaked in her tears. "Then I may need to send Erza. I'm sure she'd love to be shipped in a huge box labeled 'handle with care, dangerous contents'."

Natsu laughed at the thought. It was quiet for a few delayed seconds before Lucy had fresh tears in her eyes again. Natsu hated seeing people crying, which is partly why Lucy hid her face from him. He had this way of making people take their minds off of terrible situations by making them laugh and smile.

"Hey." He gently pulled her away by her shoulders and lifted her chin with thumb and index fingers, the other three resting underneath to support. Her face was blotched red, her eyes glistened with fresh tears and evidence of the old ones ran down her face in a million different trails. Her blonde hair was slightly frizzed and ran down to the middle of her back.

She was an absolute mess right now, and Natsu thought she was the most beautiful women in the world.

"Said I was coming back didn't I? I don't like making promises I can't keep. Would I ever lie to you?" Lucy slowly shook her head. Natsu smiled. He took her right hand, admiring the pink logo of the bar that they met at.

Well technically it wasn't the bar they had met at. They had run into each other (quite literally) in the street and Lucy decided it would be a good idea to make it up to him by taking him to a place of his choosing. He'd chosen this bar called Fairy Tail. Over the years the people who worked there and the regulars became family to Lucy and when Natsu suggested they get tattoos, the logo for the bar was the first thing that came to mind. Natsu bore one too, in red on his right shoulder.

Natsu looked back up to meet Lucy's brown eyes. They'd been dating for three years and when Natsu proposed, Lucy accepted on one condition: they'd get married only when he comes back. Until then, she wore the simple yet gorgeous engagement ring.

"Smile for me ok? I'll be back in a year! That's hardly any time at all." Natsu flashed her his famous toothy smile, the one she absolutely melted under. Lucy hesitantly closed her eyes, lifted her chin up and gave him the biggest smile she could muster. It was like a toddler showing their parent something they'd drawn for them. Except this toddler's face was stained with tears.

Natsu's expression softened and he quickly placed both his hands on either side of the base of her head, bringing her in for a kiss. They both took in each other's taste, trying to memorize each other's scents, touch, even taste. It was both the most painful good bye kiss he'd ever given her.

When they finally separated, they met each other's foreheads.

"I love you." Natsu whispered.

"I love you too." Lucy forced her voice not to crack. She placed one more kiss on his nose and then glanced behind him. Several other men and women waited on the train and were peering out through the windows at the two. The conductor was calling for all passengers to climb on board.

Lucy held on to his hand as he picked up his black backpack. Natsu slowly stepped away from her, their hands sliding out of their embrace as he stepped onto the train. He looked back at the blonde.

"See yah soon Luce!" He waved her goodbye and took his seat next to the window on the train.

"Natsu!" The man looked at her through the glass and his heart clenched. She held up her right hand in an L shape, displaying the tattoo and smiling the brightest she could. He too formed his thumb and index finger into the L and put it up for her to see. To them it meant that it didn't matter that they couldn't see one another, because where ever they were, they would be watching each other and cheering each other on.

Today was July 7. It's been three years since she'd seen Natsu and two years since he'd been declared as MIA. The last time he was seen, Natsu and Gray were carrying civilians out of a crashing building one of the enemy forces had detonated. According to Gray, he'd managed to throw the person he was carrying just out of harms way as the building burst into flames. There was no body except the scarf he always wore. That's why he was MIA, even with an explosion that size there still would have been a body or at the very least pieces of one.

Lucy knew he had to be out there some where, but her heart still ached at the possibility of him not ever coming back. She still wore the ring.

Natsu still needed to fulfill his promise after all.


End file.
